When treating patients with respiratory secretions problems, such as Cystic Fibrosis, asthma, COPD and the like, it is advantageous to help clear the patient's lungs of the pulmonary secretions (bronchial mucus) thereon. These can be dislodged best by a series of two different therapies. First, a positive expiratory pressure (PEP) is exerted back into the lungs increasing air pressure into the bronchi and pulmonary alveoli. This pressure prevents airway collapse by stenting the airways, or increasing intrathoracic pressure distal to retained secretions, by collateral ventilation or by increasing functional residual capacity. Second, the gentle application of a series of pressure waves (oscillatory vibrations) additionally provide a percussive effect, reducing the viscoelasticity of the mucus, and dislodging these secretions from the lungs so that they can be expelled (mucocillary clearance).
This can be accomplished with an oscillatory positive expiratory pressure (“OPEP”) device that uses the patient's own breathing to generate a series of pressure waves with each exhalation cycle, that causes the thorax to vibrate and loosen the mucus so that it may be expelled.
Prior art OPEP devices, such as the RC-Cornet® Oscillatory PEP Therapy Device utilize a rotating mouthpiece to adjust the frequency and pressure of the oscillations. These therapy selectors are difficult to adjust, do not stay at the set therapy position, and the settings are difficult to visualize. Further, these therapy selectors are not constrained from partial withdrawal from the OPEP body. Partial withdrawal makes the therapy easier on the patient by reducing the amount of exhalation exertion they have to expend, but alters the physical characteristics of the device such that its efficacy is severely diminished. The current devices lack handles and present an undesirable phallic-like aesthetics. The heart of OPEP devices is the silicon polymer flow valve. Being made of medical grade silicone, the flow valve is extremely hard to install and requires its own tool for replacement. The prior art flow valves are completely planar and must be frictionally fit over the distal end of the therapy selector. This is a poor design and lends itself to premature flow valve failure because of splitting and tearing. The prior art devices also require sterilization on a frequent basis.
Henceforth, an improved OPEP device that eliminates all of the prior art downfalls described above would fulfill a long felt need in the respiratory disease treatment industry. This new invention utilizes and combines known and new technologies in a unique and novel configuration to overcome the aforementioned problems and accomplish this.